BREAKING: Cam'Ron Fletcher commits to KENTUCKY

Kentucky has received its second commitment for the class of 2020. At the conclusion of his official visit to Lexington, 2020 four-star forward Cam'Ron Fletcher chose the Wildcats this morning over offers from Michigan State, Missouri, North Carolina, and Alabama, among others. He announced the commitment on his Twitter page: https://twitter.com/CamRonFletcher1/status/1158040504564625408?s=20 Fletcher joins five-star shooting guard BJ Boston in Kentucky's class of 2020, moving them up to No. 3 in the 247Sports team recruiting rankings with 52.49 total points, behind only Virginia (60.09) and Duke (53.36). So what do we need to know about the newest Wildcat? Let's take a look. Note: this as an update from KSR's primer going into Fletcher's visit to Lexington this weekend.

Who is Cam’Ron Fletcher?

	Cam’Ron Fletcher (2020) Small Forward | 6-6 | 195 lbs. Saint Louis, MO | Vashon High School AAU: Bradley Beal Elite
	ESPN	No. 45 | 11 SF	Top247	No. 37 | 8 SF
	Rivals	No. 37 | 9 SF	247 Comp.	No. 36 | 2 PF

Fletcher, a Saint Louis product and Vashon High School standout, is considered a consensus four-star recruit and top-45 prospect in the class of 2020. The 247Sports Composite currently has him listed as the No. 36 rising senior in the nation. Once Fletcher burst onto the recruiting scene, many assumed he would ultimately choose to stay close to home and sign with Missouri. When Michigan State came along with an offer, momentum flipped that direction, and visits to East Lansing soon followed. There was even speculation that he was ready to pounce on a commitment to the Spartans a few months back. Once Kentucky's interest ramped up and an offer came, though, the Wildcats immediately emerged as the heavy favorite to land the athletic 6-foot-6 wing. This year during the Nike EYBL regular season, Fletcher averaged 12.3 points and 6.4 rebounds in 14 total games played. In seven games at the Peach Invitational, the Kentucky target also averaged 11.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 1.0 steals per contest. At Vashon this past season, Fletcher averaged 16.8 points and four rebounds per game.

Player analysis

After seeing him both on the Nike EYBL circuit and at the NBPA Top 100 Camp in Charlottesville, VA over the last several months, the first aspect of Cam’Ron Fletcher’s game that immediately jumps out at you is his elite athleticism. In transition, the 6-foot-6 forward runs the floor extremely well, finishes with power at the rim, and usually makes the right decision with the ball in his hands. He’s still feeling his game out, but the pure basketball instincts are there. Outside of his athleticism, he’s also strong and extremely well-built, allowing him to create space on offense and thrive on the glass. He also projects as an elite perimeter defender at the college level with the ability to guard one through four at times. During the Calipari era at Kentucky, we've seen strong, athletic wings such as DeAndre Liggins and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist come through the program, and Fletcher should fit that mold. The biggest knock on his game is his 3-point shooting ability, though his confidence has improved quite a bit and the slight hitch in his jumper isn’t as noticeable as the one we’ve seen throughout his high school career to date. He only shot 28.3% from three during the Nike EYBL regular season this year, but his improved confidence and mechanics looked to be solid steps forward in his development as an all-around basketball player. He’s not a polished player yet by any means, but the potential is absolutely there on both ends of the floor. 247Sports’ Brian Snow feels Fletcher can eventually become a sure-fire starter at the Power-Five level, highlighting the forward’s elite athleticism and physical tools. “At 6-foot-6 with great length, his versatility and natural ability are through the roof,” he said. “Right now, he is more of a threat from 15-feet and in, but his outside shot has improved and it is beginning to become a regular part of his game. It is the toughness, athleticism, and ability to attack with the dribble that makes Fletcher such a productive player. He doesn’t have the best feel for the game, but the physical tools and desire allow him to overcome that, and be a talented forward who can excel in a number of different roles.”

Recruitment

The 6-foot-6 prospect out of St. Louis currently holds offers from Kentucky, Michigan State, Missouri, North Carolina, Kansas, and Alabama, among others. He took his very first unofficial visit of his recruitment to Missouri in May 2018, followed by another trip to Columbia just three months later in August. Michigan State then offered him a scholarship in October and he followed it up with an official visit to the school in early November. On November 24, John Calipari and Tony Barbee visited Fletcher at the 2018 Thanksgiving Hoopfest in Duncanville, Texas, where the Wildcat target finished with 22 points and nine rebounds against current Kentucky guard Tyrese Maxey. In March 2019, Fletcher took another official visit to Michigan State before heading to Lexington on an unofficial in June, where Coach Cal and the UK coaching staff extended an offer. Last month, the four-star forward trimmed his list to five, with Alabama, Kentucky, Michigan State, Missouri and North Carolina all making the final cut. Not long after, Fletcher announced his official visit to Kentucky. He has said in the past that he hoped to take additional trips to all five schools on his final list, but after hearing all he needed to hear this weekend, he decided to make it official.

Commitment

In an interview with Evan Daniels of 247Sports following his commitment, Fletcher said that Kentucky fit his style of play the best and he felt that he had the best chance of winning a title and making it to the NBA as a Wildcat.

“I picked Kentucky because it’s my style of play,” Fletcher said. “I feel like I’ll fit in well and I want to win a national championship and get to the league. [John Calipari] was just a great man and he gave me the real,” he said. “He told me how it was gonna be."And how will he help Kentucky?"I feel like my athleticism and how I run the floor in transition would help really well and the way I crash the boards and block shots,” Fletcher told 247Sports. He also said he's excited about playing with fellow Kentucky commitment BJ Boston. “B.J. is a good player. I feel like we are going to do something special next season, Fletcher said. “It’ll be fun to watch.”

What do we know?

Taking a look at his Crystal Ball on 247Sports, Kentucky held an overwhelming lead with 70% of all predictions, including picks from recruiting experts Evan Daniels, Andrew Slater, and Jerry Meyer, among other. In fact, the Wildcats ended up receiving six of his most recent predictions and seven of the last eight overall. Over at Rivals, Kentucky held 100% of all FutureCast picks, including predictions from Corey Evans, Jake Weingarten, David Sisk, and Justin Rowland, among others. In my most recent edition of Pilgrim’s Insider Notes released on Tuesday evening, I reported that a commitment to Kentucky could come as early as the end of this weekend, with sources telling KSR that the small forward target was “hoping” to be a Wildcat by the time his visit came to a close. He has said in the past that he hoped to decide in either late August or early September, but once Kentucky put on the full-court press and pushed for a commitment, there was a strong belief that he will jump on the opportunity. There have been questions about a potential commitment from Fletcher impacting Kentucky’s standing with five-star guards Jalen Green and Josh Christopher, though sources tell KSR that A) there is a mutual understanding between all parties involved that the dynamic duo out of California remains as the top priority for UK and B) the coaching staff would happily accept a commitment from Fletcher if he wanted to make one with that understanding in mind. In short, the commitment from the four-star wing this weekend will have no bearing on Kentucky’s future plans surrounding both Green and Christopher and the coaching staff is hopeful for a class that includes all four of BJ Boston, Fletcher, Green, and Christopher. In an interview with Kentucky Sports Radio at the NBPA Top100 Camp, Fletcher said that he obviously hopes to play right away, but his main focus was to go somewhere that would help further his career the best. “Me just going in and playing right away [is important],” Fletcher told KSR. “I know I’m going to have to work for it, but it’s just about who wants to get me where I want to go in my career. I want to go to a place that fits me the best, their history with players like me, playing time, stuff like that.” And now, it's apparent Fletcher felt Kentucky was the best place to make that happen.

Highlights

He also wears the checkerboard jersey well... Welcome home, Mr. Fletcher. [mobile_ad]